Making time to eat with your family is important for many reasons, but in order to make the best of those meals, it’s even more important to learn how to choose fresh foods and prepare them well. Even if you have never cooked from scratch, learning a few basic techniques is easy. Then you can cook simple, fresh meals and stop relying on packaged dinners. Your table will overflow with delicious, nutritious food that you prepared yourself, so you know what's in it - and if you buy locally, you may even know the farmer that grew or raised it.
"One of the reasons we human beings are still here on earth is that our ancestors would go out to the garden, forest or field and bring in fresh ingredients," said Mike Sackett, owner, with wife Shelly, of Kitchen Affairs in Woodland Place. "They ate many more raw foods, and did a lot of cooking without oil in covered pots," he said. "It was much healthier than frying or griddling everything like we often do today."
During the summer, the [name of your town] region offers abundant local fruits and vegetables. Naturally raised, pastured, and locally processed meat, poultry, dairy, and honey can be found year-round.
Look for fresh local products at farmer's markets, the River City Food Co-Op, health food stores, the Newburgh Country Store, gourmet markets and many groceries. In addition to peace of mind, you'll find that local products are fresher, riper, and just taste better.
"The best reason in the world to cook fresh from scratch relates to something I learned from Chef Jacques Pepin," said Sackett. "Jacques said to me: 'anyone can make a decent meal for a family if one starts with good ingredients. I can't cook worth a d*** if I start with bad food.'
"Nobody's a master chef by nature," Sackett - who is also a cooking instructor - added. "Good cooking is learned; from classes or from books, but mostly from doing. I guarantee your 100th meat loaf will be excellent! Stick with it. Start with fresh ingredients, and you'll love the results."
Cooking starts with mastering the basic techniques. These eight easy cooking methods are all you’ll need to produce delicious home-cooked meals.
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Method 1: Grill and broil
Grilling and broiling are similar; the heat comes from below when you grill, and from above when you broil. High heat is used to sear the food, and lower heat is then used to finish the cooking. Choose tender items to grill or broil, such as chicken breast or pork chops, well-marbled steaks, vegetables, or seafood. Always make sure to pat the food dry and apply oil right before cooking. White meat and fish can benefit from a buttermilk marinade to keep them juicy.
Cajun Chicken and Yellow Squash
Serves 4
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breast
1/2 cup buttermilk
2 yellow squash, sliced 1 inch thick
2 tablespoons olive oil
Cajun Seasoning to taste
Soak the chicken breasts in buttermilk overnight. Drain and pat dry. Heat grill or broiler to high. Brush the chicken and squash with olive oil and sprinkle with Cajun seasoning to taste. Oil the grill rack or broiler pan, then cook the chicken and squash using high heat, turning once, until the outside is golden, about 2 -3 minutes on each side. Reduce heat to low and continue cooking, with the lid closed, until the chicken is firm and no longer pink and the zucchini is tender, about 5 - 10 minutes.
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Method 2: Pan Fry
Pan frying involves coating food with breading, then frying it in a layer of oil deep enough to come halfway up the side of the food you’re cooking. This is a quick, medium-high heat method, and tender foods such as poultry, fish, vegetable slices, or tenderized meat work best. Slices should be cooked in the time it takes the breading to brown. To bread, pat the food dry, then dip it in seasoned flour. Next dip the food into beaten egg, and finally roll it in cracker crumbs or breadcrumbs. The oil should be hot enough to sizzle when you place your food into it, in order to ensure that the breading doesn't get oily. Keep the food sizzling, turning it once, until it is golden brown all over. If your coating gets too brown before the center is done, finish it in a 300 degree oven.
Parmesan Fried Zucchini
Serves 4
1/2 cup flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/4 cup bread crumbs
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
2 small zucchini, cut 1/2 inch thick
1 egg, beaten
1/2 cup olive or canola oil
Mix the flour, salt and pepper in a large zipper bag. Mix the bread crumbs and parmesan in a bowl. Add the zucchini slices to the bag and shake until coated. Dip each slice into the beaten egg, letting the extra egg drip back into the bowl, then roll it in the crumb and cheese mixture. Set the slices aside until each one is breaded. Heat the oil in a wide, heavy skillet until the oil is lightly rippling. Carefully lower the zucchini into hot oil and fry until the bottom of each piece is golden, then turn and fry the other side. Drain on paper towels.
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Method 3: Sauté
Sautéing is a high-heat method used for thinner pieces of poultry, fish, vegetables, steak or tenderized meat. The food may be coated with seasoned flour or left plain. It is fried in a small amount of hot butter or oil until it is brown on the outside and just done on the inside. Thicker pieces are finished in the oven. A pan sauce is made by boiling wine or another liquid in the used skillet, until the sauce liquid has been reduced and thickened. The skillet should be very hot before you add food to it; never over-crowd the skillet or the food will release too much moisture and boil instead of brown.
Beefsteak Pizzaola
Serves 2
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 thin-cut ribeye steaks
salt and pepper
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 small onion, sliced
Pinch red pepper flakes
1/4 cup red wine
1 cup chopped tomato
2 tablespoons capers
Heat the olive oil in a wide skillet. When it is almost smoking, add the steaks, season, and sear quickly on each side until brown. Remove to a plate. Lower the heat and add the garlic, onion and red pepper flakes, and cook until soft, stirring often, about 5 minutes. Add red wine and boil until it is syrupy. Finally, add the tomato and capers and cook until the sauce is thick. Taste and season. Add the steak and any juices back into the sauce, and cook the meat to your desired degree of doneness. Serve with pasta if desired.
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Method 4: Roast and Bake
Larger items, such as roast beef, pork loin, or turkey breast, can be seared at high heat but are finished at a low temperature in order to avoid shrinking and drying out. When cooking a large piece of meat, cover it to keep the outside from browning before the center is done.
When roasting and baking, the food is cooked by hot, dry air. Any vegetable or cut of meat can be roasted, from whole chickens to sliced eggplant. Make sure the surface is well-oiled or buttered before roasting to avoid dryness. Larger items, such as roast beef, pork loin, or turkey breast, can be seared at high heat but are finished at a low temperature in order to avoid shrinking and drying out. When cooking a large piece of meat, cover it to keep the outside from browning before the center is done. Fatty meats such as pork shoulder can cook at a consistent medium-high temperature.
Tangy Pork Roast
Serves 8
3 teaspoons chili powder, divided
1 teaspoon garlic salt
1 (4 pound) rolled and tied pork shoulder roast
1 cup apple jelly
1 cup ketchup
2 tablespoons cider vinegar
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Combine 1 teaspoon chili powder and garlic salt. Rub over roast. Place the roast fat side up in a shallow roasting pan. Bake, uncovered, for 2 hours.
In a saucepan, combine the jelly, ketchup, vinegar and the remaining chili powder. Bring it to a boil, stirring until smooth. Brush 1/4 cup jelly mixture over the roast. Bake 10-15 minutes or until crusty, and rest for 15 minutes before slicing. Serve with remaining sauce.
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Method 5: Boil and Simmer
Only pasta should actually be boiled. Everything else should be placed into seasoned water, brought to a boil, and then lowered to a gentle simmer, with a few small bubbles breaking the surface. Rapid boiling toughens meat by causing it to shrink quickly and expel moisture. The gentle, moist heat of simmering works well for tougher cuts such as beef brisket, shank, and dark meat poultry.
Shrimp Boil
Serves 4
1 box crab boil seasoning
4 medium red potatoes
4 ears corn
1/2 pound smoked sausage
1 pound large shell-on shrimp, thawed
Bring a large pot of water to a boil with the seasoning, cover, and let simmer for 15 minutes. Add the potatoes, bring the mixture back to a boil, lower to a lively simmer, and cook for 15 minutes. Add the corn and sausage and bring back to a boil. Add the shrimp and bring back to a boil, then turn off the heat, cover, and let it steep for 15 minutes before draining. Serve hot with butter.
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Method 6: Steam
Breaded pan fried zucchini recipe: slices of zucchini are dipped into flour, then egg, then breading mixture and placed
into a hot skillet with oil to fry until golden on both sides.
Steaming permits the heat and steam of boiling water to cook food without immersing it in liquid, thus keeping the nutrition in the food. Steaming works best with delicate foods, especially vegetables and seafood. You can purchase a bamboo steamer that is meant to be set over the curved bottom of a wok, a metal steamer basket to set in the bottom of a lidded saucepan, or an electric counter-top steamer. This is a great, quick way to cook fresh vegetables for everyday eating.
Steamed Cauliflower with Butter and Parsley
Serves 4
1 medium head cauliflower, cut into florets
1 tablespoon butter
Salt and pepper to taste
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
Place the cauliflower into a steamer with water already boiling, cover it tightly, and steam for 10 - 15 minutes or until it is tender. Remove carefully, and toss with the butter, seasoning, and parsley.
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Method 7: Poach
After the seared steaks are returned to the skillet to warm in the sauce, pasta is added and the dish is finished with a sprinkle of fresh oregano.
Poaching is similar to simmering, except that the liquid is never permitted to boil. It is kept at 180 degrees, just hot enough to move around in the pan without breaking a bubble. This method is for delicate fish, eggs, and fruit. When poaching seafood, the liquid is seasoned with spices, lemon, onion and herbs. When poaching eggs, a dash of vinegar is added to help quickly firm up the eggs. For fruit, the poaching liquid is sweet and spicy.
Poached Pears
1 bottle red zinfandel wine
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
3-4 whole cloves
4 firm bosc pears (Use bosc pears. Green anjou pears will fall apart.)
Bring the wine, sugar, vanilla and cloves to a boil in a medium saucepan, and stir it to dissolve the sugar. Lower the heat until no bubbles break the surface. Peel and halve the pears, removing the core with a spoon or small knife. Carefully place the pears into the poaching liquid and keep the liquid barely under a simmer for 15 minutes. Poach until the pears are tender when pierced with a knife. Remove the pears and permit the liquid to cool. Chill pears in the poaching liquid until ready to serve. Some liquid may be reduced for a sauce.
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Method 8: Stew and Braise
Your finished meal - Beefsteak Pizzaola with pasta, Parmesan fried zucchini, and a side of simple grilled vegetables.
Stewing and braising are combination cooking methods, because some of the ingredients are browned in oil first, then simmered in liquid until tender. These methods are best for tougher cuts of meat, such as beef chuck, shank or brisket, pork shoulder, and dark meat poultry.
Braised Beef Tacos
Serves 4
1 tablespoon oil
2 pounds beef shank meat with the bone
1 small onion, chopped
Salt and pepper
Flour Tortillas
Bowls of diced fresh tomato, onion, cilantro, jalapeno peppers if desired, and lime wedges.
In a wide skillet, heat the oil and sear shanks until dark brown on both sides. Place shanks into a soup pot and barely cover with water. Add the chopped onion, season generously with salt and pepper, bring to a boil and lower to a simmer. Cover and cook slowly for 1 1/2 hours or until the meat is falling off the bone. Remove the meat from the broth and shred. Discard the bones. For each taco, place some shredded beef in a warm tortilla and top with fresh vegetables, a sprinkle of salt and a squeeze of lime juice. Roll up and enjoy. Eat the broth with a spoon.
